


Beyond Ganymede

by Teanna



Category: NSYNC
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2002-10-31
Updated: 2002-10-31
Packaged: 2017-10-02 22:19:52
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 447
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11294
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Teanna/pseuds/Teanna
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Lance - in space!</p>
            </blockquote>





	Beyond Ganymede

They never told him his ship would be a junk heap; they never said his captain would be a drunk. His mom never cried out: "I wish you'd stay on Earth" - and Justin never signed the card he sent.

*

Takeoff, and Britney flies in, she's flown in to stand on a stage, draped with the American flag and the Russian, one of the Russian flags - something like that. They asked him what he wanted her to sing, he said "Hotel California", her agent said "something from the new album", Lynne said "something from the new album", and Britney sings something from the new album.

It's dead winter cold in Russia and Britney's miniskirt is no help at all, and Lance doesn't listen to her but he looks at her blue legs.

*

In the night, his last night on Earth, the phone rings and Britney's whispers, her voice is raspy from the cold, she whispers:

_"rising up through the air up ahead in the distance I saw a shimmering light/and I was thinking to myself this could be Heaven or this could be Hell"_

*

There are only minutes to takeoff and the Russians are busy kissing icons and the radio sounds off, it's his accountant and he says FreeLance is going down, quick, man, you gotta come down here and deal with this mess, and Lance, on the radio, says "I'm in space, I can't make it, you're on your own now."

The accountant says come back, come back, all your pretty moneys are gone soon, come back, but that's when Mission Control cuts the line and all is black.

*

All is dark before the sun comes up and he's strapped in, and they tell him not to touch anything. The captain, oh his captain, smells of vodka and can't remember to speak American and suddenly Lance wonders what the hell he's doing.

*

Two days before takeoff the Southern Baptist Union email him to ask if he's said his prayers. He hits return, starts to write, "thank you for your letter" then he stops. Deletes the email like so many others.

*

They take off and nearly die and when he wakes up they are South of Saturn and West-by-Southwest of Neverneverland, and the stars his destination and the captain says, we're losing parts, we're fading out, the songs of distant Earth can not be heard no more we're through...

And they share the vodka that the captain brought and Lance, he tells them, he says "I was the greatest star on Earth, I was" but the captain looks into space and says, that all these stars around us, all these stars surround us

as we sleep.

 

FINIS

**Author's Note:**

> refs to books by science fiction authors abound. "hotel california" lyrics by the eagles.


End file.
